Presentation Title: Advances in imaging of electrical trees in polymeric insulation Abstract: The growth of electrical trees is an important degradation process in polymer dielectrics under high voltages. The growth of an electrical tree can ultimately lead to breakdown and the failure of high voltage equipment. Suppressing and/or predicting tree growth in polymer insulation is therefore an important concern for the power supply industry. This seminar will consider recent advances in the imaging of trees. In particular 3D reconstructions from X-ray computed tomography (XCT), and the use of atomic force microscopy infrared spectroscopy (AFM-IR) will illustrate how improved analytical techniques can help understand the processes behind tree growth.
Prof Simon Rowland completed a B.Sc. in physics at The University of East Anglia, and his PhD at Chelsea College, London University. He worked for many years on dielectrics and their applications in multinational companies prior to joining The Dept. of Electrical and Electronic Engineering in The University of Manchester in 2003. He was appointed Professor of Electrical Materials in 2009, and served as Head of School from 2015-19. He was President of the IEEE Dielectric and Electrical Insulation Society in 2011 and 2012. His current research interests include the processes leading to dielectric failure in high voltage DC networks. |